Washington–Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) joined Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and a group of their colleagues to request federal investigators determine whether former Secretary David Bernhardt overruled guidance by career officials to push the Trump administration's destructive rule to remove critical habitat protections for the Northern Spotted Owl on 3.4 million acres of federal lands in the Pacific Northwest.

In a letter to Interior Inspector General Mark Greenblatt, the lawmakers wrote, “The USFWS decision appears to fit a larger pattern of malfeasance by the Trump administration’s political leadership at the Department of Interior. In less than two brief years under David Bernhardt’s leadership, the Department has been mired in one ethical scandal after another. Bernhardt and his loyalists have demonstrated a willingness to insert themselves into the scientific process in order to achieve preferred policy outcomes, withhold information from the public, and even mislead Congress.” 

“While the Biden administration has taken actions to mitigate the effects of this rule, we ask that you quickly review this decision and to determine whether USFWS contradicted or ignored scientific recommendations made by career staff,” the lawmakers concluded.   

In addition to Feinstein and Wyden, the letter was also signed by Senators Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Representatives Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) and Jared Huffman (D-Calif.). 

A full copy of today’s letter is available here.   

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